Extended kerf cut and spline restraint system for elevated flooring surfaces

ABSTRACT

A system for limiting relative movement (e.g., vertical movement) between adjacent building surface components of an elevated building surface assembly in a manner that is free of securing (e.g., mechanically attaching, such as by threaded fasteners, clips, etc.) the building surface components to an underlying support structure. In one aspect, an elevated building surface assembly includes a plurality of support members disposed in spaced-apart relation on a fixed surface, a plurality of building surface components operatively disposed on the upper portions of the support pedestals, and at least one spline disposed in openings of abutting outer edge segments of first and second adjacent ones of the plurality of building surface components. Each opening extends from a first of a plurality of corner portions of the building surface component to an adjacent second of the corner portions of the building surface component.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 14/264,859,entitled “EXTENDED KERF CUT AND SPLINE RESTRAINT SYSTEM FOR ELEVATEDFLOORING SURFACES,” and filed on Apr. 29, 2014, the entire contents ofwhich are incorporated herein as if set forth in full.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to the field of structural systems forrestraining surface tiles such as for elevated floors, decks andwalkways.

2. Description of Related Art

Elevated building surfaces such as elevated floors, decks, terraces andwalkways are desirable in many interior and exterior environments. Onecommon system for creating such surfaces includes a plurality of surfacetiles, such as concrete tiles (pavers), stone tiles, clay tiles, ceramictiles, or wood tiles, and a plurality of spaced-apart support pedestalsand/or joists or stringers upon which the tiles are placed to besupported above a fixed surface. For example, in outdoor applications,the surface may be elevated above a fixed surface to promote drainage,to provide a level structural surface for walking, and/or to preventdeterioration of or damage to the surface tiles. In indoor applications,the surface may be elevated to allow for pipes and the like to beconcealed between the elevated surface and the fixed surface. Thepedestals can have a fixed height, or can have an adjustable height suchas to accommodate variations in the contour of the fixed surface uponwhich the pedestals are placed, or to create desirable architecturalfeatures.

Although a variety of shapes are possible, in many applications thesurface tiles are rectangular in shape, having four corners. In the caseof a rectangular shaped tile, each of the spaced-apart support pedestalscan therefore support four adjacent surface tiles at the tile corners.Stated another way, each rectangular surface tile can be supported byfour pedestals that are disposed under each of the corners of the tile.Large or heavy tiles can be supported by additional pedestals atpositions other than at the corners of the tiles.

One example of a support pedestal is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.5,588,264 by Buzon, which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety. The support pedestal disclosed by Buzon can be used in outdooror indoor environments and is capable of supporting heavy loads appliedby many types of building surfaces. The pedestal includes a threadedbase member and a threaded support member that is threadably engagedwith the base member to enable the height of the support pedestal to beadjusted by rotating the support member or the base member relative tothe other. The support pedestal can also include an extender member(e.g., a coupling or coupler member) disposed between the base memberand the support member for further increasing the height of thepedestal, if necessary.

Support pedestals are also disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,363,685 byKugler, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/0261329 by Kugler et al., andU.S. Pat. No. 8,122,612 by Knight, III et al., each of which is alsoincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In some support systems and structural assemblies for supporting (e.g.,elevating) surfaces formed with discrete building surface components,the building surface components are secured (e.g., mechanically,chemically, etc.) to the underlying support structure (e.g., supportpedestals, joists, stringers, etc.) to limit adjacent building surfacecomponents from moving relative to each other during disruptivevibrations or high wind events. However, such disruptive vibrations orhigh wind events can cause increased stress on the portions of thebuilding surface components that are secured to the underlying supportstructure. For instance, the corner portions of the building surfacecomponents are sometimes too weak to safely and securely restrictmovement of the surface tiles. This problem is particularly significantfor surface tiles fabricated from brittle materials, such as concrete,clay, stone, ceramic, composites, and the like.

In this regard, disclosed herein are systems and methods for limitingrelative movement (e.g., vertical movement) between adjacent buildingsurface components in a manner that is free of securing (e.g.,mechanically attaching, such as by threaded fasteners, clips, etc.) thebuilding surface components to an underlying support structure. In oneaspect, an elevated building surface assembly includes a supportstructure having a plurality of support members disposed in spaced-apartrelation on a fixed surface, a plurality of building surface componentsoperatively disposed on the upper portions of the support members, andat least one spline disposed in openings of abutting outer edge segmentsof first and second adjacent ones of the plurality of building surfacecomponents. Each opening extends from a first of a plurality of cornerportions of the building surface component to an adjacent second of thecorner portions of the building surface component along an outer edgesegment of the building surface component. The first corner portions ofeach of the first and second building surface components are disposedover a first of the plurality of support members, the second cornerportions of each of the first and second building surface components aredisposed over a second of the plurality of support members that isadjacent the first support member, the first and second building surfacecomponents are free of connections to the first and second supportmembers, and the at least one spline is at least partially disposed overat least one of the first and second support members.

In one arrangement, the at least one spline may pass continuously overan entirety of an upper surface of at least one of the first and secondsupport members. In another arrangement, the at least one spline mayinclude first and second opposite ends, where at least one of the firstand second ends is not disposed over either of the first and secondsupport members. In a further arrangement, the at least one spline maybe at least partially disposed over both of the first and second supportmembers.

In one embodiment, the at least one spline may be disposed in theopenings of abutting outer edge segments of third and fourth adjacentones of the plurality of building surface components, where the outeredge segment of the third building surface component is substantiallycollinear with outer edge segment of the first building surfacecomponent, and where the outer edge segment of the fourth buildingsurface component is substantially collinear with outer edge segment ofthe second building surface component. For instance, the first cornerportions of each of the third and fourth building surface components maybe disposed over the second support member, the second corner portionsof each of the third and fourth building surface components may bedisposed over a third of the support members that is adjacent the secondsupport member, and the third and fourth building surface components maybe free of connections to the second and third support members.

In another aspect, a method for use in constructing an elevated buildingsurface assembly locating a plurality of support members upon a fixedsurface with a predetermined spacing between the support pedestals,first placing first and second adjacent corner portions of a first of aplurality of building surface components over respective first andsecond of the plurality of support members, second placing first andsecond adjacent corner portions of a second of the plurality of buildingsurface components over the first and second support members, andreceiving a connecting spline into openings in abutting outer edgesegments of the first and second building surface components, where thefirst and second building surface components are free of connections orattachments to the first and second support members.

In addition to the exemplary aspects and embodiments described above,further aspects and embodiments will become apparent by reference to thedrawings and by study of the following descriptions.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an interior or exterior building surfaceassembly.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a support pedestal.

FIG. 3 a is an exploded perspective view of a portion of a buildingsurface assembly and showing a restraint spline for use in restrainingadjacent building surface components.

FIG. 3 b is an exploded perspective view of a portion of a buildingsurface assembly and showing a restraint spline for use in restrainingadjacent building surface components, according to another embodiment.

FIG. 4 a is an exploded linear perspective view of a restraint splinefor receipt in openings of abutting outer edge segments of first andsecond adjacent building surface components of a building surfaceassembly.

FIG. 4 b is an exploded plan view of the portion of the buildingassembly of FIG. 3 a.

FIG. 4 c is an exploded plan view of the portion of the buildingassembly of FIG. 3 b.

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view of the restraint spline of FIG.4 being disposed in the openings of the abutting outer edge segments ofthe first and second adjacent building surface components.

FIG. 6 is a top perspective view of a building surface component.

FIG. 7 is a side perspective view of a building surface component.

FIG. 8 is a bottom perspective view of a building surface component.

FIG. 9 is a close-up perspective view of a portion of the buildingsurface component of FIGS. 6-8 and illustrating an opening in an outeredge segment of the building surface component.

FIG. 10 is another close-up perspective view of a portion of thebuilding surface component of FIGS. 6-8 and illustrating an opening inan outer edge segment of the building surface component.

FIG. 11 is another close-up perspective view of a portion of thebuilding surface component of FIGS. 6-8 and illustrating an opening inan outer edge segment of the building surface component.

FIG. 12 is another close-up perspective view of a portion of thebuilding surface component of FIGS. 6-8 and illustrating an opening inan outer edge segment of the building surface component.

FIGS. 13 a-13 b are first and second linear perspective views of abuilding surface component.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of an interior or exterior buildingsurface assembly.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a building surface component.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 illustrates a portion of an elevated building surface assembly100 that includes a building surface 101 formed from a plurality ofbuilding surface components 102 (e.g., surface tiles, pavers, flooringunits, etc.). The building surface components 102 are elevated above afixed surface by a support structure 200 comprising a plurality ofspaced-apart support members such as support pedestals 201 which, in oneembodiment, may be interconnected by a plurality of stabilizing braces(not shown). Each building surface component 102 may broadly includegenerally opposing top and bottom surfaces 108, 112, one or more cornerportions 110, one or more outer edge segments 120 disposed betweenadjacent corner portions 110, and a thickness 120 between the top andbottom surfaces 108, 112. The building surface components 102 can becomprised of various shapes (e.g., rectangular as shown, square,hexagonal, and/or other shapes) and from virtually any material fromwhich a building surface is to be constructed. Examples include, but arenot limited to, slate tiles, natural stone tiles, composite tiles,concrete tiles (e.g., pavers), wooden deck tiles, particularly hardwooddeck tiles, tiles of metal or fiberglass grating, porcelain, ceramic,plastic, composites, and the like.

The support pedestals 201 can be placed in a spaced-apart relation onfixed surfaces including, but not limited to, rooftops, plazas, overconcrete slabs including cracked or uneven concrete slabs or sub-floorsand can be placed within fountains and water features and the like. Theelevated building surface assembly 100 can be used for both interior andexterior applications. For instance, each of the building surfacecomponents 102 may be placed upon several support pedestals 201 toelevate the building surface component 102 above the fixed surface. Asillustrated in FIG. 1, the building surface components 102 may be squareand a support pedestal 201 a may be disposed beneath four cornersportions 110 of adjacent building surface components 102. Other supportpedestals such as support pedestal 201 b may be disposed under the outeredge segments 116 of the building surface components 102. That is,support pedestals such as support pedestal 201 b may be placed betweenthe corner portions 110 and proximate to a central portion of the outeredge segment 116. Such a configuration may be desirable when using veryheavy and/or very large building surface components, such as largeconcrete building surface components, when placing heavy objects on theelevated building surface, or the like. Although not illustrated,support pedestals may be disposed in other locations, such as below acentral portion of the building surface components 102. The supportpedestals 201 may be laid out in various configurations as may bedictated by the shape and size of the building surface components, suchas a rectangular configuration or a triangular configuration to supportrectangular or triangular building surface components.

The support pedestals 201 forming the support structure 200 may befixed-height, height-adjustable, or any combination and may beconstructed of any appropriate materials (e.g., plastic). Broadly, eachsupport pedestal 201 may include a lower portion that is adapted to beplaced upon a fixed surface, an upper portion for receiving a buildingsurface component 102, and a central section extending between orinterconnecting (e.g. perpendicularly) the upper and lower portions. Asjust one example, and referring to FIG. 2, a support pedestal 201 mayinclude a lower portion such as a base member 212 including a basemember extension 214 (e.g., a cylindrical base member extension) thatextends upwardly from a base member plate 215 (e.g., a base plate) whenthe support pedestal 201 is operatively placed on a fixed surface. Thebase member 212 may include base member threads (not visible) on asurface of the base member extension 214, e.g., internal or externalthreads.

With continued reference to FIG. 2, the support pedestal 201 may alsoinclude an upper portion such as a support member 216 that is configuredto be operatively connected to the base member 212 and including asupport plate 220 and a support member extension 219 (e.g., acylindrical support member extension) that extends downwardly from thesupport plate 220. The support member 216 may include support memberthreads, e.g., external or internal threads, on the support memberextension 219 that are adapted to threadably engage base member threadsto connect the support member 216 to the base member 212 (e.g., and morespecifically, to operatively attach the support member extension 219 tothe base member extension 214). Thus, the support member 216 may bemated directly to base member threads 218 and may be rotated relative tothe base member 212 (or vice versa) to adjust the height of the supportpedestal 201. The support plate 220 is thereby disposed above the basemember 212 to support a surface tile 102 on an upper surface 222thereof.

Those of skill in the art will appreciate that many other types ofsupport pedestals may be utilized in connection with the presentinvention. Exemplary support pedestals are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.5,588,264 by Buzon, U.S. Pat. No. 6,363,685 by Kugler, U.S. PatentPublication No. 2004/0261329 by Kugler et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 7,921,612by Knight, III et al.; and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2011/0023385 byKnight, III et al. Further, the support pedestals may be interconnectedsuch as in the manner disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication No.2011/0011012 by Knight, III et al. Each of the foregoing U.S. Patentsand Patent Publications is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety. Also, as is noted above, the building surface components maybe supported by other means, such as by structural beams, joists,stringers, etc (e.g., see FIG. 14, discussed below).

As discussed previously, it may be desirable or even necessary restrainor limit relative movement between adjacent building surface components102 in a manner that is free of securing (e.g., affixing, attaching,adhering, etc.) the building surface components 102 to the underlyingsupport structure 200 on or over which the building surface components102 are supported. In this regard, and turning now to FIG. 3 a, anexploded perspective view of a portion of a building surface assembly(e.g., building surface assembly 100 of FIG. 1) is illustrated whichshows a restraint spline 300 for use in restraining one or more pairs ofadjacent building surface components 102 (e.g., see FIG. 15) free of anyattachments or connections (e.g., mechanical, chemical, etc.) betweenthe building surface components 102 and underlying support pedestals 201that support the building surface components 102 (e.g., or other supportstructure such as support structure 200′ of FIG. 14, discussed below).The restraint spline 300 may be constructed from any appropriatematerial(s) such as at least one of metal, plastics, wood, densemicrofiber composites, reinforced composites, and/or the like. In oneembodiment, the restraint spline may be in the form of a single, unitarystructure such as any appropriate gauge, length and width of sheetmetal, plastic, or the like.

As shown, the corner portions 110 of the various building surfacecomponents 102 may be supported on upper surfaces 222 of a plurality ofsupport pedestals 201, such as, for purposes of illustration, linearlyarranged first, second, third and fourth support pedestals 201 a, 201 b,201 c and 201 d (although it is to be understood that more or fewer thanfour support pedestals 201 could be included in one or more linear rowsof the building surface assembly). For instance, first corner portions110 ₁ of first and second adjacent building surface components 102 ₁,102 ₂ may be disposed over and supported on the upper surface 222 of thefirst support pedestal 201 a and second corner portions 110 ₂ of thefirst and second adjacent building surface components 102 ₁, 102 ₂ maybe disposed over and supported on the upper surface 222 of the secondsupport pedestal 201 b.

As another example, first corner portions 110 ₁ of third and fourthadjacent building surface components 102 ₃, 102 ₄ may be disposed overand supported on the upper surface 222 of the second support pedestal201 b and second corner portions 110 ₂ of the third and fourth adjacentbuilding surface components 102 ₃, 102 ₄ may be disposed over andsupported on the upper surface 222 of the third support pedestal 201 c,where the outer edge segments 116 of the first and third buildingsurface components 102 ₁, 102 ₃ are substantially collinear and theouter edge segments 116 of the second and fourth building surfacecomponents 102 ₂, 102 ₄ are substantially collinear. As a furtherexample, first corner portions 110 ₁ of fifth and sixth adjacentbuilding surface components 102 ₅, 102 ₆ may be disposed over andsupported on the upper surface 222 of the third support pedestal 201 cand second corner portions 110 ₂ of the fifth and sixth adjacentbuilding surface components 102 ₅, 102 ₆ may be disposed over andsupported on the upper surface 222 of the fourth support pedestal 201 d,where the outer edge segments 116 of the first, third, and fifthbuilding surface components 102 ₁, 102 ₃, 102 ₅, are substantiallycollinear and the outer edge segments 116 of the second, fourth andsixth building surface components 102 ₂, 102 ₄, 102 ₆ are substantiallycollinear.

Furthermore, each of the plurality of building surface components 102includes an elongated opening 124 (e.g., slot, slit, groove, track,kerf, etc.) in at least one outer edge segment 116 thereof that extendsfrom a first corner portion 110 ₁ to an adjacent second corner portion110 ₂, where each opening 124 is configured (e.g., sized, shaped, etc.)to receive a portion of the restraint spline 300. With additionalreference now to FIG. 4 a, an exploded linear perspective view of thefirst and second building surface components 102 ₁, 102 ₂ and therestraint spline 300 of FIG. 3 a is illustrated. As shown, each opening124 may generally include opposite upper and lower surfaces 128, 132that are respectively configured to abut and/or face top and bottomsurfaces 304, 308 of the restraint spline 300. In one arrangement, eachopening 124 may also include a back surface 136 between the upper andlower surfaces 128, 132 that is respectively configured to abut and/orface a side surface of the restraint spline 300. For instance, first andsecond opposite side surfaces 312, 316 of the restraint spline 300 maybe respectively received in the openings 124 of the first and secondbuilding surface components 102 ₁, 102 ₂ so that the back surfaces 136face or abut the first and second side surfaces 312, 316.

In use, and with combined reference to FIGS. 3, 4 a and 4 b, a pluralityof support pedestals 201 (e.g., including first, second, third andfourth support pedestals 201 a, 201 b, 201 c and 201 d) may be locatedor placed upon a fixed surface with a predetermined spacing between thesupport pedestals. The first and second corner portions 110 ₁, 110 ₂ ofthe first and second building surface components 102 ₁, 102 ₂ may berespectively received on and over the upper surfaces 222 of the firstand second support pedestals 201 a, 201 b so that the outer edgesegments 116 in which openings 124 are disposed abut or face each other.Additionally, the first and second side surfaces 312, 316 of the splinemay be respectively received in the openings 124 of the first and secondbuilding surface components 102 ₁, 102 ₂ and the first and secondbuilding surface components 102 ₁, 102 ₂ may be free of any connectionsor attachments (e.g. mechanical, chemical) to the first and secondsupport pedestals 201 a, 201 b. See FIG. 5. For instance, and withreference to FIG. 4 a, a height 138 of the openings 124 may besubstantially the same as (e.g., slightly greater than) a thickness 320of the restraint spline 300.

In one arrangement, the first and second corner portions 110 ₁, 110 ₂ ofthe first building surface component 102 ₁ may be placed over the uppersurfaces 222 of the first and second support pedestals 201 a, 201 b andthen the first side surface 312 of the restraint spline 300 may beinserted into the opening 124 of the first building surface component102 ₁. Thereafter, the first and second corner portions 110 ₁, 110 ₂ ofthe second building surface component 102 ₂ may be placed over the uppersurfaces 222 of the first and second support pedestals 201 a, 201 b sothat the second side surface 316 of the restraint spline 300 is receivedin the opening 124 of the second building surface component 102 ₂. SeeFIG. 5. In another arrangement, both of the first and second buildingsurface components 102 ₁, 102 ₂ may be placed over the first and secondsupport pedestals 201 a, 201 b and then the restraint spline 300 may besimultaneously longitudinally slid through and along the openings 124 ofthe first and second building surface components 102 ₁, 102 ₂ from thefirst corner portions 110 ₁ to the second corner portions 110 ₂. Asshown in FIGS. 3 a and 4 b, the restraint spline 300 may be configuredto at least extend from the first corner portions 110 ₁ of the first andsecond building surface components 102 ₁, 102 ₂ to the second cornerportions 110 ₂ of the first and second building surface components 102₁, 102 ₂. That is, the restraint spline 300 may be configured to passover the upper surfaces 222 of at least the first and second supportpedestals 201 a, 201 b.

The restraint spline 300 may also be configured to extend through theopenings 124 of abutting outer edge segments 116 of additional pairs ofadjacent building surface components 102 (e.g., the third and fourthbuilding surface components 102 ₃, 102 ₄, the fifth and sixth buildingsurface components 102 ₅, 102 ₆, etc.) as well as over additionalsupport pedestals 201 (e.g., the third support pedestal 201 c, thefourth support pedestal 201 d, etc.). For instance, the second, fourthand sixth building surface components 102 ₂, 102 ₄, 102 ₆ may be placedover the upper surfaces 222 of the first, second, third and fourthsupport pedestals 201 a, 201 b, 201 c and 201 d (e.g., as shown in FIG.3) and then the second side surface 316 of the restraint spline 300 maybe inserted into the openings 124 of the second, fourth and sixthbuilding surface components 102 ₂, 102 ₄, 102 ₆.

Thereafter, the first, third and fifth building surface components 102₁, 102 ₃, 102 ₅ may be placed over the upper surfaces 222 of the first,second, third and fourth support pedestals 201 a, 201 b, 201 c and 201 dso that the first side surface 312 of the restraint spline 300 isreceived in the openings 124 of the first, third and fifth buildingsurface components 102 ₁, 102 ₃, 102 ₅. At this point, the restraintspline 300 may extend at least from the first corner portions 110 ₁ ofthe first and second building surface components 102 ₁, 102 ₂ to thesecond corner portions 110 ₂ of the fifth and sixth building surfacecomponents 102 ₅, 102 ₆ (e.g., as well as over the first, second, thirdand fourth support pedestals 201 a, 201 b, 201 c and 201 d). That is, afirst end 324 of the restraint spline 300 may be disposed over the uppersurface 222 of the first support pedestal 201 a and an opposite secondend 328 of the restraint spline 300 may be disposed over the uppersurface of the fourth support pedestal 201 d. Alternatively, all of thefirst, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth building surfacecomponents 102 ₁, 102 ₂, 102 ₃, 102 ₄, 102 ₅, 102 ₅ may be placed overthe first, second, third and fourth support pedestals 201 a, 201 b, 201c and 201 d and then the restraint spline 300 maybe longitudinallyinserted through the openings 124 so as to extend from the first cornerportions 110 ₁ of the first and second building surface components 102₁, 102 ₂.

While FIGS. 3 a and 4 b illustrate the restraint spline 300 as beingsupported by at least two support pedestals 201, where the first andsecond ends 324, 328 of the restraint spline 300 are disposed overrespective support pedestals, other arrangements are envisioned andencompassed herein. For instance, and as shown in FIGS. 3 b and 4 c, therestraint spline 300 may be configured to pass continuously over only asingle support pedestal 201 (e.g., support pedestal 201 b), where thefirst and second ends 324, 328 are not disposed over the upper surfaces222 of any of the support pedestals 201. Of course, the restraint spline300 may pass continuously over one or more additional support pedestals201 (e.g., support pedestal 201 c, etc.), where the first and secondends 324, 328 are not disposed over the upper surfaces 222 of any of thesupport pedestals 201. In some arrangements, one of the first and secondends 324, 328 of the restraint spline 300 may be disposed over the uppersurface 222 of one of the support pedestals 201 (e.g., support pedestal201 a) while the other of the first and second ends 324, 328 may not bedisposed over the upper surface 222 of any of the support pedestals 201.

FIGS. 6-12 illustrate another embodiment of a building surface component102′ that may be used with the restraint spline 300 of FIGS. 3 a-5. Forinstance, the building surface component 102′ may be constructed from aplurality of wooden or composite boards or tiles, slate tiles, naturalstone tiles, composite tiles, concrete tiles (e.g., pavers), tiles ofmetal or fiberglass grating, porcelain, ceramic, plastic, composites,and the like and may include an opening 124 (e.g., slot, slit, groove,track, kerf, etc.) in at least one outer edge segment 116 thereof thatextends between adjacent corner portions 110 and that is configured(e.g., sized, shaped, etc.) to receive a portion of a restraint spline300.

FIGS. 13 a-13 b illustrate another embodiment of a building surfacecomponent 102″ that may be used with the restraint spline 300 of FIGS. 3a-5. For instance, the building surface component 102″ may include anumber of stacked layers (e.g., slabs, boards, etc.) such as first,second and third layers 140, 144, 148 interconnected in any appropriatemanner, where an outer side edge (not labeled) of the third layer 148 isset back with respective to the outer side edges (not labeled) of thefirst and second layers 140, 144 to create openings 124 in outer edgesegments 116 of the surface tile 102″ as shown in FIGS. 13 a-13 b (e.g.,such as openings 124 in each of a plurality of outer edge segments ofthe building surface component 102″) For instance, a height 138 of eachopening 124 (e.g., and a thickness of the third layer 148) may besubstantially the same as (e.g., slightly greater than) a thickness 320of a restraint spline 300 (see FIG. 4). The arrangement of FIGS. 13 a-13b may be useful with materials (e.g., concrete, ceramic, porcelain,etc.) into which it is difficult to cut or otherwise form openings(e.g., grooves, slots) in outer edge segments thereof. For instance, thefirst and second layers 140, 144 may each be respective slabs ofconcrete while the third layer 148 may be a material to bind the firstand second layers 140, 144 together (e.g., any appropriate adhesive,tape, etc.).

FIG. 14 illustrates a portion of another embodiment of an elevatedbuilding surface assembly 100′ that includes a building surface 101′formed from a plurality of building surface components 102 (e.g.,surface tiles, pavers, flooring units, etc. of any appropriatematerial(s) such as concrete, ceramics, porcelain, etc.). In thisembodiment, the building surface components 102 are elevated above afixed surface by a support structure 200′ comprising a plurality ofelongated horizontal supporting members 400 (e.g., joists, stringers,and/or the like) constructed of any appropriate material (e.g., wood,composites, etc.) and interconnected in any appropriate manner (e.g.,via brackets 404), either in the manner shown in FIG. 14 or in variousother manners. As shown, the horizontal supporting members 400 may bespaced apart by any appropriate distance(s). The horizontal supportingmembers 400 may be disposed directly over a fixed surface (as shown) ormay be disposed over a plurality of support pedestals (e.g., supportpedestals 201 of FIG. 1).

Each building surface component 102 may be placed upon a plurality ofhorizontal support members 400 to elevate the building surface 101′above the fixed surface. For instance, a first pair of corner portions110 of a building surface component 102 may be placed over a top of afirst horizontal support member 401 ₁ (e.g., free of any connections orattachments between the building surface component 102 and the firsthorizontal support member 401 ₁) and a second pair of corner portions110 of the building surface component 102 may be placed over a top of asecond horizontal support member 401 ₂ (e.g., free of any connections orattachments between the building surface component 102 and the secondhorizontal support member 401 ₁). Additional building surface components102 may be similarly disposed over the horizontal support members 400.While only four building surface components 102 are shown on the supportstructure 200′, various additional building surface components 102 maybe similarly disposed over the support structure 200′. Additionally, oneor more of the outer edge segments 116 of the building surfacecomponents 102 may include openings 124 (not shown in FIG. 14) asdiscussed previously for receiving restraint splines 300 (e.g., seeFIGS. 3 a-5). For instance, a restraint spline 300 may be disposed inthe abutting openings 124 of one or more pairs of building surfacecomponents 102 of the elevated building surface assembly 100′. Eachrestraint spline 300 may span two or more horizontal support members400.

The foregoing description has been presented for purposes ofillustration and description. Furthermore, the description is notintended to limit the invention to the form disclosed herein.Consequently, variations and modifications commensurate with the aboveteachings, and skill and knowledge of the relevant art, are within thescope of the present invention. For instance, while the drawingsillustrate only a single restraint spline 300 for use with a singlelinear row of support pedestals, it is to be understood that numerousadditional parallel and/or perpendicular restraint splines 300 could beused to restrain additional pairs of adjacent surface tiles 102 overadditional rows of support pedestals as part of an elevated buildingsurface assembly in any appropriate configuration. Furthermore, at leastsome of the building surface components 102 may include openings 124 inmore than one outer edge segment 116 (e.g., two or more outer edgesegments 116, all outer edge segments 116, etc.) for receipt of aplurality of restraint splines 300 in any appropriate manner. Stillfurther, at least some of the outer edge segments 116 may include aplurality of openings 124 therein for receipt of multiple restraintsplines 300 therein. In one arrangement, one or more of the restraintsplines 300 may extend between adjacent support pedestals 201 but not toor even over the adjacent support pedestals.

It is also to be understood that the various components disclosed hereinhave not necessarily been drawn to scale. For instance, the restraintspline 300 may actually be much thinner than depicted in the figures(e.g., in the event the restraint spline 300 is constructed of sheetmetal, plastic, and/or other material or the like). Also, manycomponents have been labeled as “first,” “second,” “third,” etc. merelyto assist the reader in understanding the relationships between thecomponents should not imply that an elevated building surface assemblyencompassed herein need have the specific arrangement shown anddescribed herein. Furthermore, while small gaps have been shown betweensome of the components in the figures (e.g., between the restraintspline 300 and the inside surfaces of the openings of the surface tiles102 ₁, 102 ₂ in FIG. 5), it is to be understood that in reality, thesegaps may not exist and that such components may be in direct contact. Inother words, at least some of such gaps have merely been provided toassist the reader in understanding the various components of thedisclosed systems.

While various embodiments of the present invention have been describedin detail, it is apparent that modifications and adaptation of thoseembodiments will occur to those skilled in the art. However, it is to beexpressly understood that such modifications and adaptations are withinthe scope of the present invention.

1. An elevated building surface assembly, comprising: a supportstructure including a plurality of support pedestals disposed inspaced-apart relation on a fixed surface, the support pedestalsincluding: a base member; a support member including a support plate;and a central section between the base member and the support member; aplurality of building surface components disposed on upper portions ofthe support plates, the building surface components comprising: a topsurface; a bottom surface; a plurality of corner portions; and an outeredge segment disposed between adjacent corner portions, wherein at leastone of the outer edge segments includes an opening therein that extendsfrom a first of the corner portions to an adjacent second of the cornerportions; and a spline disposed in the openings of collinear outer edgesegments of first and second adjacent ones of the plurality of buildingsurface components, wherein the first corner portions of each of thefirst and second building surface components are disposed over a firstof the plurality of support pedestals, wherein the second corner portionof the first building surface component is disposed over a second of theplurality of support pedestals that is adjacent the first supportpedestal, wherein the second corner portion of the second buildingsurface component is disposed over a third of the plurality of supportpedestals that is adjacent the first support pedestal, wherein the firstand second building surface components are free of connections to thefirst, second and third support pedestals, and wherein the spline passescontinuously over an entirety of an upper surface of the support plateof the first support pedestal.
 2. (canceled)
 3. The elevated buildingsurface assembly of claim 1, wherein the spline includes first andsecond opposite ends, wherein at least one of the first and second endsis not disposed over either of the first and third support pedestals. 4.(canceled)
 5. The elevated building surface assembly of claim 1, whereinthe spline is disposed in the openings of collinear outer edge segmentsof third and fourth adjacent ones of the plurality of building surfacecomponents, wherein the outer edge segment of the third building surfacecomponent abuts the outer edge segment of the first building surfacecomponent, and wherein the outer edge segment of the fourth buildingsurface component abuts the outer edge segment of the second buildingsurface component.
 6. The elevated building surface assembly of claim 5,wherein the first corner portions of each of the third and fourthbuilding surface components are disposed over the first supportpedestal, wherein the second corner portion of the third buildingsurface component is disposed over the second support pedestal, whereinthe second corner portion of the fourth building surface component isdisposed over the third support pedestal, and wherein the third andfourth building surface components are free of connections to the first,second and third support pedestals.
 7. (canceled)
 8. (canceled)
 9. Theelevated building surface assembly of claim 1, wherein the spline is afirst spline, wherein the opening of the first building surfacecomponent is a first opening in a first outer edge segment of the firstbuilding surface component, and further including: a second splinedisposed in a second opening in a second outer edge segment of the firstbuilding surface component.
 10. The elevated building surface assemblyof claim 9, wherein the second spline is parallel to the first spline.11. The elevated building surface assembly of claim 9, wherein thesecond spline is non-parallel to the first spline.
 12. (canceled) 13.The elevated building surface assembly of claim 1, wherein the spline isa first spline, and further including: a second spline disposed in theopenings of abutting outer edge segments of third and fourth adjacentones of the plurality of building surface components.
 14. The elevatedbuilding surface assembly of claim 13, wherein the first corner portionsof each of the third and fourth building surface components are disposedover a third of the plurality of support pedestals, wherein the secondcorner portions of each of the third and fourth building surfacecomponents are disposed over a fourth of the plurality of supportpedestals that is adjacent the third support pedestal, wherein the thirdand fourth building surface components are free of connections to thethird and fourth support pedestals, and wherein the second spline is atleast partially disposed over at least one of the third and fourthsupport pedestals.
 15. The elevated building surface assembly of claim14, wherein the second spline is parallel to the first spline.
 16. Theelevated building surface assembly of claim 14, wherein the secondspline is non-parallel to the first spline.
 17. (canceled)
 18. Theelevated building surface assembly of claim 13, wherein the first cornerportions of each of the third and fourth building surface components aredisposed over the first support pedestal, wherein the second cornerportion of the third building surface component is disposed over thesecond support pedestal, wherein the second corner portion of the fourthbuilding surface component is disposed over the third support pedestal,wherein the first and second building surface components are free ofconnections to the first, second and third support pedestals, andwherein the second spline is partially disposed over the first supportpedestals. 19-21. (canceled)
 22. The elevated building surface assemblyof claim 1, wherein the opening comprises a slot.
 23. (canceled) 24.(canceled)
 25. The elevated building surface assembly of claim 1,wherein the spline comprises a single, unitary structure. 26-28.(canceled)
 29. A method for use in constructing an elevated buildingsurface assembly, comprising: locating a plurality of support membersover a fixed surface with a predetermined spacing between the supportmembers; first placing first and second adjacent corner portions of afirst of a plurality of building surface components over respectivefirst and second of the plurality of support members; second placingfirst and second adjacent corner portions of a second of the pluralityof building surface components over the first and second supportmembers; and receiving a spline into openings in abutting outer edgesegments of the first and second building surface components, whereinthe first and second building surface components are free of connectionsto the first and second support members.
 30. The method of claim 29,wherein the receiving includes: inserting the spline into the opening ofthe first building surface component after the first placing and beforethe second placing, wherein the second placing includes receiving thespline in the opening of the second building surface component.
 31. Themethod of claim 29, wherein the receiving occurs after the first placingand second placing.
 32. The method of claim 31, wherein the receivingincludes inserting the spline into the openings in first and secondbuilding surface components simultaneously.
 33. The method of claim 29,further including: third placing first and second adjacent cornerportions of a third of the plurality of building surface components overthe second and an adjacent third of the plurality of support members;fourth placing first and second adjacent corner portions of a fourth ofthe plurality of building surface components over the second and thirdsupport members; and receiving the spline into openings in abuttingouter edge segments of the third and fourth building surface components.34. The method of claim 33, wherein the third and fourth buildingsurface components are free of connections to the second and thirdsupport members.
 35. The method of claim 33, wherein the outer edgesegment of the third building surface component is substantiallycollinear with outer edge segment of the first building surfacecomponent, and wherein the outer edge segment of the fourth buildingsurface component is substantially collinear with outer edge segment ofthe second building surface component.
 36. The method of claim 33,wherein the spline passes continuously over an entirety of the secondsupport member.
 37. The method of claim 36, wherein the spline includesfirst and second opposite ends, wherein at least one of the first andsecond ends is not disposed over either of the first and third supportmembers.
 38. The method of claim 36, wherein neither of the first andsecond ends of the spline is disposed over either of the first and thirdsupport members.
 39. The method of claim 33, wherein the spline extendsat least from the first corner portions of the first and second buildingsurface components to the second corner portions of the third and fourthbuilding surface components.
 40. The method of claim 29, wherein thespline extends at least from the first corner portions of the first andsecond building surface components to the second corner portions of thefirst and second building surface components.
 41. The method of claim29, wherein the spline is a first spline, wherein the opening of thefirst building surface component is a first opening in a first outeredge segment of the first building surface component, and furtherincluding: receiving a second spline into second opening in a secondouter edge segment of the first building surface component.
 42. Themethod of claim 41, wherein the second spline is parallel to the firstspline.
 43. The method of claim 41, wherein the second spline isnon-parallel to the first spline.
 44. (canceled)
 45. The method of claim29, wherein the spline is a first spline, and further including:receiving a second spline into openings in abutting outer edge segmentsof third and fourth of the building surface components, wherein thethird and fourth building surface components are free of connections tothe plurality of support members.
 46. The method of claim 45, whereinthe second spline is parallel to the first spline.
 47. (canceled) 48.(canceled)
 49. The elevated building surface assembly of claim 1,wherein the central section adjustably interconnects the base member tothe support member.
 50. The elevated building surface assembly of claim1, wherein the central section rigidly interconnects the base member tothe support member.
 51. An elevated building surface assembly,comprising: a support structure including a plurality of supportpedestals disposed in spaced-apart relation on a fixed surface, thesupport pedestals including: a base member; a support member including asupport plate; and a central section interconnecting the base member andthe support member; a plurality of building surface components disposedon the support plates of the support pedestals, the building surfacecomponents including: a top surface; a bottom surface; a plurality ofcorner portions; and an outer edge segment disposed between adjacentcorner portions, wherein at least one of the outer edge segmentsincludes an opening therein that extends from a first of the cornerportions to an adjacent second of the corner portions; and a splinedisposed in the openings of abutting outer edge segments of first andsecond adjacent ones of the plurality of building surface components,wherein the first corner portions of each of the first and secondbuilding surface components are disposed over a first of the pluralityof support pedestals, wherein the second corner portions of each of thefirst and second building surface components are disposed over a secondof the plurality of support pedestals that is adjacent the first supportpedestal, wherein the first and second building surface components arefree of connections to the first and second support pedestals, andwherein the spline is at least partially disposed over at least one ofthe first and second support pedestals.
 52. The elevated buildingsurface assembly of claim 51, where the support pedestals furtherinclude: a threaded central section that threadably interconnects thethreaded base extension to the threaded support extension.